Combination cabinet bar unit



Nov. 12, 1963 A. LE BRON 3,110,533

COMBINATION CABINET BAR UNIT Filed Oct. 12, 1961 INVENTOR ANDRE LE BRON United States Patent 3,119,533 COMBINATION CABINET BAR UNIT Andre Le Bron, 1020, Washington Ave., Bronx, NY. Filed Oct. 12, 1961, Ser. No. 144,748 2 Claims. (ill. 312-222) This invention concerns a utility cabinet, adapted for containing a television receiver, bar, radio, amplifier, phonograph turntable, record storage and associated com ponents.

A particular object of the invention is to provide a cabinet with sliding doors adapted to close the entire front of the cabinet when not in use.

A further object is to provide a cabinet of the character described with doors at the top providing access to compartments for containing liquor bottles, glasses and other bar accessories.

Another object is to provide a cabinet as described wherein the sliding doors serve to lock and release the doors of the bar compartments.

For further comprehension of the invention, and of the objects and advantages thereof, reference will be had to the following description and accompanying drawings, and to the appended claims in which the various novel features of the invention are more particularly set forth.

In the accompanying drawings forming a material part of this disclosure:

FIG. 1 is a front elevational view of the cabinet in a closed position.

FIG. 2 is a perspective View of the cabinet in an open position.

FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 are sectional views on an enlarged scale taken on lines 33 and 4-4, respectively, of FIG. 2.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view on an enlarged scale taken on line 55 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 6 is a sectional view on an enlarged scale of a sliding door of the cabinet, taken on line 6-6 of FIG. 1.

Referring to the drawings, there is shown a rectangular cabinet 10 with vertical side walls 11 on a flat horizontal baseboard 12 standing on legs 15. The board 12 is formed with a groove 14 extending along the side edges 16, 18 and front edge 20. An opposing similar groove 22 is formed in a flat frame member 24 at the top of the cabinet. In these grooves are slidably fitted two sliding doors 25 and 26. Each door, as best shown in FIG. 6, includes a plurality of vertical wood or plastic slats 28 secured by cement 30 to a fabric sheet 32. The door is thus flexible at points between the slats so that the doors can be bent to curved configuration at the front corners of the cabinet. At the corners the grooves have curved portions as indicated at G and G in FIG. 2 and FIG. 4. Handles 34 on the end slats 28 enable the doors to be moved from the front position shown inFIG. 1 to the sides of the cabinet as shown FIG. 2 and vice vers-a. The door 26 can be further opened from the position shown in FIG. 2 to the right side of the cabinet.

At the top of the cabinet are two spaced bar compartments 36, 38 formed by partitions 3'1, 33. These compartments serve for storage of bottles, glasses and other bar accessories. A central top panel 40 located between the compartments 36, 38 serves as a bar counter. Doors 42, 44 are mounted at the vertical rear wall 46 of the cabinet by hinges 48, 50. These hinges carry springs 52 which normally bias the doors 42, 44 to an open vertical position as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3. At their free ends, the doors carry catch plates 53 each having a hole 54 therein. Mounted on the vertical front wall 56 of the cabinet at openings 58 and 60 are leaf springs 62, 64. These leaf springs carry pins 66 adapted to holes 54 in the catch plates as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5.

The leaf springs have free portions which stand out- 3,1 10,533 Patented Nov. 12, 1963 r ce wardly from the front wall to retract the pins 66 when the sliding doors are retracted away from the front of the cabinet. When the sliding doors are closed they hold the springs 62, 64 pressed rearwardly to engage the pins in the holes 54 in the catch plates if the doors 42, 44 are closed. As the sliding doors are moved to the sides of the cabinet, they clear the springs 62, 64 which retract forwardly from holes 54 to release the top doors 42, 44 so that these doors open automatically.

Exposed at the front of the cabinet in compartments formed by partitions 90 are television receiver 70, radio 72, amplifier 74, tape recorder 76, record player 78', storage compartment 80 for phonograph records 82, compartment 84 for storage of tape reels 86, and loud-speakers 88 behind grille 89. Other components can be provided to replace the listed components if desired.

As shown in FIG. 2, the cabinet serves as a support for a combination of components, with added convenience of a bar at the top having two storage compartments and a bar counter. When wholly closed, the cabinet presents a neat, compact, attractive appearance. One or both sliding doors can be opened to open one or both bar compartments at will. The several panels and doors can be made of wood, metal, plastic, glass, or other suitable furniture construction material. The cabinet is readily movable.

While I have illustrated and described the preferred embodiment of my invention, it is to be understood that I do not limit myself to the precise construction herein disclosed and that various changes and modifications may be made within the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by United States Letters Patent is:

1. A utility cabinet, comprising a rectangular casing structure having rear, side, and front walls, a bottom baseboard, a horizontal top frame, said frame and board having opposing grooves near front and side edges thereof at the top of the board and the bottom of the frame, sliding flexible doors slid-ably mounted in vertical positions in the opposing grooves, partitions defining shallow compartments at the top of said structure below said frame, doors hinged at the rear wall to close said compartments, a horizontal panel at the top of said structure flush with the frame separating said compartments, spring means biasing the further doors to normally opened position, catch means on ends of said hinged doors, and latch means mounted on the front wall and operable by said sliding doors to engage said catch means for holding said hinged doors in closed position, said latch means being spring members having pins extending rearwardly thereof to engage portions of said catch means when said sliding doors are closed, each of said sliding doors being formed by a plurality of slats secured to a flexible sheet, said grooves having curved portions at corners of said casing structure so that the sliding doors assume curved configurations at said corners, said horizontal panel serving as a bar.

2. A utility cabinet, comprising a rectangular casing structure having rear, side, and front walls, a bottom baseboard, a horizontal top frame, saidframe and board having opposing grooves near front and side edges thereof at the top of the board and the bottom of the frame, sliding flexible doors slidably mounted in vertical positions in the opposing grooves, partitions defining shallow compartments at the top of said structure below said frame, doors hinged at the rear wall to close said compartments, a horizontal panel at the top of said structure flush with the frame separating said compartments, spring means biasing the further doors to normally opened position, catch means on ends of said hinged doors, and latch means mounted on the front wall and operable by said sliding doors to engage said catch means for holding said hinged doors in closed position, said latch means being spring members having pins extending rearwardly thereof to engage portions of said catch means when said sliding doors are closed, each of said sliding doors being formed by a 5 plurality of slats secured to a flexible sheet, said grooves having curved portions at corners of said casing structure so that the sliding doors assume curved configurations at said corners, said front wall having a plurality of openings therein for escape of sound Waves, and partitions in said casing structure defining other compartments for a television receiver, radio, amplifier, tape recorder, phono- A, graph record player, and loudspeakers, said horizontal panel serving as a bar.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS D. 65,482 Lytton Aug. 26, 1924 629,416 Abernathy July 25, 1899 1,368,048 Pilliod Feb. 8, 1921 FOREIGN PATENTS 947,534 France Jan. 10, 1949 

1. A UTILITY CABINET, COMPRISING A RECTANGULAR CASING STRUCTURE HAVING REAR, SIDE, AND FRONT WALLS, A BOTTOM BASEBOARD, A HORIZONTAL TOP FRAME, SAID FRAME AND BOARD HAVING OPPOSING GROOVES NEAR FRONT AND SIDE EDGES THEREOF AT THE TOP OF THE BOARD AND THE BOTTOM OF THE FRAME, SLIDING FLEXIBLE DOORS SLIDABLY MOUNTED IN VERTICAL POSITIONS IN THE OPPOSING GROOVES, PARTITIONS DEFINING SHALLOW COMPARTMENTS AT THE TOP OF SAID STRUCTURE BELOW SAID FRAME, DOORS HINGED AT THE REAR WALL TO CLOSE SAID COMPARTMENTS, A HORIZONTAL PANEL AT THE TOP OF SAID STRUCTURE FLUSH WITH THE FRAME SEPARATING SAID COMPARTMENTS, SPRING MEANS BIASING THE FURTHER DOORS TO NORMALLY OPENED POSITION, CATCH MEANS ON ENDS OF SAID HINGED DOORS, AND LATCH MEANS MOUNTED ON THE FRONT WALL AND OPERABLY BY SAID SLIDING DOORS TO ENGAGE SAID CATCH MEANS FOR HOLDING SAID HINGED DOORS IN CLOSED POSITION, SAID LATCH MEANS BEING SPRING MEMBERS HAVING PINS EXTENDING REARWARDLY THEREOF TO ENGAGE PORTIONS OF SAID CATCH MEANS WHEN SAID SLIDING DOORS ARE CLOSED, EACH OF SAID SLIDING DOORS BEING FORMED BY A PLURALITY OF SLATS SECURED TO A FLEXIBLE SHEET, SAID GROOVES HAVING CURVED PORTIONS AT CORNERS OF SAID CASING STRUCTURE SO THAT THE SLIDING DOORS ASSUME CURVED CONFIGURATIONS AT SAID CORNERS, SAID HORIZONTAL PANEL SERVING AS A BAR. 